Known in the art are rotary vane machines with planetary trains, designed for the above-mentioned applications, e.g., by E. Kauertz, U.S. Pat. No. 3,144,007 for Rotary Radial-Piston Machine, issued 1967 (appl. Aug. 11, 1964); U.S. Pat. No. 6,886,527 ICT for Rotary Vane Motor.
Such machines are disclosed in German Patent No. 142119 issued 1903; German Patent No. 271552 issued 1914, cl. 46 a6 5/10; French Patent No. 844 351 issued 1938, cl. 46 a5; U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,156 issued 1966, cl. 12-8.47 and others.
Mechanisms and machines for similar applications are disclosed in Russian Patent No. 2 013 597, Int. cl.5 F02B 53/00; Russian Patent No. 2 003 818, Int. cl.5 F02B 53/00; Russian Patent No. 2 141 043, Int. cl.6 F02B 53/00, F04C 15/04, 29/10, issued 1998; Ukrainian Patent No. 18 546, Int. cl. F02B 53/00, F02G 1/045, issued 1997.
Planetary trains used in the prior-art machines provide for mutual and relative rotationally-oscillatory movement of their compression members such as pistons. However, in case the required operating time is several thousand hours, the prior-art planetary trains are incapable of transmitting to the output shaft significant power from the pistons, e.g., several thousands of kilograms, during the power stroke in the case that the machine is the rotary internal combustion engine.
The prior-art rotary-vane machines with such planetary trains have the following common structural features:
a casing having an annular chamber and an intake port and exhaust port;
at least two pairs of pistons fixed on two drive shafts coaxial with the annular surface defining the chamber, and at least one of the drive shafts having a crank;
an output shaft coaxial with the drive shafts and having a carrier,
at least one external planetary gear meshed with a stationary central gear coaxial with the surface defining the chamber and with the drive shafts;
crankshaft(s) coaxial with the planetary gear(s);
connecting rods pivotally linking the arms of the drive shafts and crankshafts of the planetary gears.
The planetary train of such machines has a number of disadvantages. First, the external planetary gears have to be large-sized to make sure they are efficient in transmitting workload. Second, the rate of rotation of planetary gears and the crankshafts coaxial with the planetary gears must be several times that of the output shaft, and thus operating conditions and the service life of the bearings are deteriorated. Third, the crankshafts and planetary gears coaxial with them are disposed on the carrier at a significant radial distance from the axis of the output shaft. For this reason, significant centrifugal forces act on them producing additional loads on the bearings of the planetary gears to also decrease the service life of the rotary-piston machine.
The closest prior art is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,739,307, US Cl. 123/245, issued May 25, 2004 for Internal Combustion Engine and Method to Ralph Gordon Morgado.
This rotary engine comprises a casing having a working chamber coaxial with an output shaft, pistons disposed within the working chamber and fixed on two concentric drive shafts. The shafts serve as a link between the space-displacing gas-dynamic section of the engine and the planetary train of this engine.
The planetary train of such engine comprises a central gear fixed on the casing and coaxial with the output shaft, and two concentric drive shafts. On the side of the gas-dynamic section, there are the pistons mounted on the shafts, and on the other, i.e., kinematic side, there are arms. There is a carrier affixed to the output shaft, crankshafts and planetary gears coaxial with the crankshafts, all rotatably mounted on the carrier, the planetary gears being meshed with the central gear. The mechanical linkage thus described is closed by a pair of connecting rods pivotally connecting the crankshafts with the arms on both drive shafts.
Such planetary train suffers from many drawbacks.
First, complexity of the planetary train, which is due to a number of parts of the same kind, such as the planetary gears and crankshafts coaxial with them. This increases the cost of production, consumption of materials, and the weight of the engine.
Second, high angular velocities of the planetary gears and the crankshafts affixed to them, which velocities are several times higher than the rate of rotation of the output shaft. Under this condition, excessively large velocity load on the bearings occurs to thus decrease reliability and service life of the planetary train.
Third, limitations on work loads by the tooth engagement of the planetary gears externally meshing with the central gear and having a tooth overlapping of a relatively small amount, so that such gear pair offers small load-carrying capability.
Fourth, the crankshafts and planetary gears, being disposed on the carrier at an amply-dimensional radial distance from the axis of the output shaft, cause the development of great centrifugal forces and loads acting on the bearings and accordingly tend to decrease the service life of the planetary train.
From the aforesaid it will be obvious that the drawbacks of the prior-art engine and particularly its planetary train stem from design features and operation conditions of such structural members as crankshafts and associated planetary gears, notably                the gear ratio,        the type of meshing—external,        the crankshafts and planetary gears disposed on the carrier at an amply-dimensional radial distance from the axis of the output shaft.        